About me...

So my little bro, who is getting into web design, thinks that I should have an 'About Me' part on the website, explaining why/how the business idea came to be.

Putting thoughts together here.
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About Me:

I spent roughly 8 years working with children who have special needs.  I have worked with children ages 18 months through roughly 15 years, in a variety of settings:  public school inclusion, public school self-contained classes, home therapy, and home respite care.  The children I have worked with over the years have disabilities ranging from mild learning difficulties to genetic disorders, and from autism to cerebral palsy, with everything in between.  My circumstances changed, and I moved to a new state.  We decided that it would be best for my family if I were to stay home, rather than look for a job.  I missed being a part of the Special Needs community, though, and spent a lot of time thinking about how to stay involved from home.  That's when I realized that I could put my background, skills, and knowledge to use helping make life better at home for families of children who have disabilities.

One thing we found with all of the children I worked with over the years is that visual supports help them to understand the world around them.   Creating these visual supports was one of my biggest job duties, and one of the most important.  Every child is unique, and this means that the supports that they need at school and at home are unique.  This is where I can help.  I will meet with you and get to know you, and through you, get to know your child.  During our consultation, we will talk about your child's needs, and create a plan for the visuals you need.  Within an agreed upon time frame, I will create proofs for you, personalizing everything for your child.  You will have a chance to check over everything and request changes before I create hard copies for you. 

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If you're reading this, what are your thoughts?

I posted this on Facebook yesterday, and have gotten a lot of good feedback.  I think I may be able to make a go of it.  I thought I'd re-post here, not that too many people read my blog, but still... it's family news, I guess... my attempt at stepping into self-employment.

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A few weeks ago, I had the beginning of an idea, and I'm putting it out there now to see if anyone thinks it might be feasible. If I tagged you, it's because I think you might have some kind of a unique perspective on my idea that I could use, so if you have thoughts, I'd love to hear them... If I haven't tagged you and you're reading this anyways, and have an idea, please lay them on me.

Since I've moved here to Dayton, probably the only thing that would make life better would be if we had a little more cash rolling in. I'm sure pretty much everyone feels that way, right? Jeff and I have decided, at least for the time being, that in our world, it makes the most sense for me to not have a job outside our home. Child care costs are astronomical, and I'd be working just to pay for day care for Stephen, and that doesn't make any sense to us at all. We love my having the flexibility to be able to volunteer at school, or to take the pets to the vet when needed, to be home during the day to take care of stuff around here, and to be here to take care of Stephen when he gets home from school. This isn't a situation I've had before, and I'm relishing it, for sure. BUT... if I could be bringing some money in to the house, that would be even better, especially with our trying to plan a wedding.

So here's my idea... use what I know best, right? For 8 years, I worked with children who have special needs. I love them all, and for those of you who are on this list because I worked with your children, I consider myself so blessed to have known them and you. I would LOVE to continue to be involved somehow in the Special Needs community. One of my major job duties over the years was to create visual supports for 'our' kids... star charts, behavior charts, visual representations of rules to follow, or rewards to be earned, you name it. I got good at this. I am very well versed in the use of Boardmaker and other computer programs to create exactly what I want. So why not put that experience and knowledge to use? What if I were to meet with families and create supports for them to use in their homes? I know that where I used to work, we would create anything parents needed at home, but I get the feeling it's not like that here, necessarily.

I know there are a lot of budding companies out there to provide services (tutoring, respite, ABA, etc) to children and their families. I can't (right now) join one... I need the flexibility to work when I want... and I don't have the credentials to do something like that on my own... I don't (yet) have the degrees I need to be allowed to single-handedly devise and carry out therapy plans.

What I CAN do is what I've always done... create the visuals that help children understand their world.

What do you think? Is this feasible? How do I go about it? Would it be better to start the whole thing on the up-and-up right away, or to try it just on the QT for a while to see if there's even interest?

If you're a parent, is this something you'd consider? Would you meet with someone like this if you heard of it? Is this something you even need? How much would you pay someone to create personalized visuals for you? I'd be looking to recoup material costs, and something for my time. What's that worth?

I have contacted Mayer Johnson to see if something like this is even allowed, as far as they're concerned... but I *think* it would be ok, based on what I've read on their website.

I'm welcoming any and all thoughts... comment here, or send me an email, if you'd rather keep it between us.

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I have gotten the green light both from The Honey to do what I think I need to do, and from Mayer Johnson to use their symbols...

Now the question is... can I do it?

Welcoming suggestions for a company name, too...